In that moment, the girl who had always been so strong found her eyes brimming with tears. Suddenly, she cried out at the top of her lungs: "You idiot, get out of here! I don't need you to save me!"
"I don't want you to sacrifice your own life trying to rescue me — run, now!!!!"
"We were never anything to each other. You don't owe me anything. There's no reason to go this far for me — just go! Go, and leave me alone!!!"
This time, Zi Ling meant every word. She didn't want Chu Feng to die because of her. She wanted him to live. After all, the reason she was trapped here was entirely her own selfishness — she had only herself to blame. It had nothing to do with Chu Feng.
But Chu Feng paid her no heed. He stubbornly tried to push himself to his feet, and when that proved impossible, he chose to crawl instead — dragging himself forward with his stiff, frozen hands and legs, inch by painstaking inch.
At first, Chu Feng had only wanted to try his best to save Zi Ling. If he couldn't, he would leave. He hadn't intended to throw away his own life for her sake.
But the moment Zi Ling begged him to go, something inside him wavered — no, it was the opposite. An inexplicable conviction surged through him: he *must* save Zi Ling. And that resolve only grew firmer, harder, until now it was absolutely unshakable.
Though Chu Feng's determination had become ironclad, his body had long since reached its limits.
His vision was blurring. His consciousness was fading. Only one thought remained in his mind — piece together the complete scroll and save Zi Ling.
But even that thought couldn't sustain him. In the end, Chu Feng's body went limp, and he collapsed face-down onto the floor, slipping into unconsciousness.
Once Chu Feng fell unconscious, he could no longer circulate his Yuan Force to resist the cold permeating the air. The chill descended upon him like a ferocious, invisible beast, surging in from every direction. In moments, it encased his entire body in a thick shell of ice, freezing him solid.
"CHU FENG!!!!!" At the sight of this, Zi Ling's face drained of all color, and she began screaming hysterically.
With her Yuan Force sealed and her Mental Power unusable, she had no way of knowing what state Chu Feng was in. She assumed he was dead.
The mere thought that he had died — and died because of her — sent tears cascading down her flawless cheeks like floodwaters breaching a dam, soaking her beautiful face.
"His strength is lacking, but his willpower is admirable. It seems this boy is dead set on saving you."
"From the very beginning, he never intended to escape alone." Just then, the Spirit World Master in the golden robe appeared noiselessly at Zi Ling's side. He spoke to her: "Would you like to see just how much he loves you?"
Without waiting for her answer, he flicked his sleeve several times toward the hall below. The bone-piercing cold that had blanketed the chamber was drawn into his sleeve, vanishing without a trace.
In that instant, the hall below returned to its earlier appearance — not a wisp of chill remained. But Chu Feng himself had changed dramatically.
He was now almost unrecognizable. Every inch of skin on his body was covered in deep cracks, and in some places the flesh had rotted away entirely, exposing the stark white bone beneath. His entire body was ravaged by frostbite that had penetrated to the marrow.
"CHU FENG!!!"
Seeing him like this, Zi Ling's eyes widened in shock. Her parted lips trembled, reflecting the unspeakable horror that gripped her heart.